New report by Zoë Garbett AM urges immediate pause in the Met’s rapid expansion of live facial recognition technology

A new report published today by Green Party London Assembly Member Zoë Garbett AM exposes serious concerns over the Metropolitan Police Service’s use of live facial recognition (LFR) technology, warning that it is being deployed without clear legal authority, without transparency and that the technology disproportionately affects Black and brown communities. [1]

Elected local and national representatives, as well as civil liberties groups have raised concerns about live facial recognition technology since its initial trials nearly ten years ago. Despite the absence of specific legislation authorising its use, police forces across England and Wales, including the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), continue to deploy LFR.

Previous research by Zoë Garbett has shown that over half of all LFR deployments in 2024 took place in areas with higher-than-average Black populations, including Thornton Heath, Croydon (40%), Northumberland Park, Haringey (36%), and Deptford High Street, Lewisham (34%). [2]

Overall, LFR is disproportionately used in areas with higher populations of Black, Asian, and Mixed ethnic groups, and the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) has been criticised for limited transparency regarding how and where the technology is deployed.

The report draws on the work of Big Brother Watch and Liberty, alongside contributions from Siân Berry MP and Croydon Green Party councillor Ria Patel, whose borough was the first in London to permanently deploy live facial recognition cameras.

The report includes four key recommendations from Zoë Garbett:

1. The Metropolitan Police Service should stop using Live Facial Recognition technology immediately.
2. The Mayor of London and Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime should call on the Government to introduce primary legislation with strict controls, limiting LFR to the most serious crimes and banning its use by private companies or other public authorities.
3. The Metropolitan Police Service should publish the true financial and operational costs of all LFR deployments.
4. The Metropolitan Police Service must ensure all deployments are free from bias, with assessments on watchlists, locations, and tactics publicly available for Londoners to review.

Published during the Government consultation on facial recognition technology, the report concludes with a model consultation response prepared by Zoë Garbett, intended to guide Londoners in responding to the consultation. [3]

Green Party London Assembly Member Zoë Garbett said:

“Live facial recognition technology subjects everyone to constant surveillance, which goes against the democratic principle that people should not be monitored unless there is suspicion of wrongdoing.

“These invasive tools allow the police to monitor the daily lives of Londoners, entirely unregulated and without any safeguards. The Met repeatedly claim that live facial recognition is a success, yet they continue to withhold the data required to scrutinise those claims.

“We’ve already seen the real harm this technology causes with children wrongly placed on watchlists and Black Londoners disproportionately targeted and misidentified.

“It makes no sense for the Home Secretary to announce the expansion of live facial recognition at the same time as running a government consultation on the use of this technology.  This expansion is especially concerning given that there is still no specific law authorising the use of this technology.”

“The rapid deployment must stop and robust protections must be put in place to safeguard our rights.

“I urge everyone to respond to the Government consultation and use the guide I’ve prepared to make sure we have a say in how this technology is used going forward.”